Bushfire Appeal

THIS BAG HAS NOW BEEN SOLD. THANK YOU FOR YOUR SUPPORT. (12 FEB 2009)

I was thinking of making a new line of children's drawstring bags for my Etsy shop when the Victorian bushfires made everything going on in my little world shrink to insignificance. Even as I write the death toll is steadily growing and the survivors are doing it tough.

The generosity and public outpouring of people not only in Australia but around the world has been staggering. The international cricket match played yesterday and last night between Australia and New Zealand raised over $6 million. That amount was made up of player match fees, ticket revenues and sponsorship and crowd donations. There will be more major fundraising events on television in the coming weeks, no doubt.

I felt so helpless as an individual, but after researching several options (donate proceeds of Etsy sales, put items up for auction, etc) I decided that I would prefer to make something which would reach a small child and perhaps put a smile on his/her face. So after discovering Beyond Pink and Blue's blog, I knew this it exactly what I was looking for.

Having made the decision, I immediately cut out the fabric for the drawstring bags, put one up in my Etsy shop in an effort to attract attention to the bushfire appeal, and will be sending the balance off to Beyond Pink and Blue, along with a few other items.

I had to turn off the news last night, as the scenes were too distressing. Let's hope those poor people can rebuild their lives and I am sure with the help of the general public, they will see that life can be good.